Ready player none: five video games we want to see as anime

American production studios are starting to dig deep in the video game archives for their anime-inspired cartoons (hey there, Castlevania). But there are still so many titles we have the hankering to see on our TV screens, given a new lease of life and motion as Japanese animations. As soon as the two of us started talking about it, so many games came to mind that we couldn’t believe were still wanting of an anime adaptation. But this list is the whittling down of our five favourite games that could be the makings of simulcasts we’d be glued to every week.

Kingdom Hearts

The Disney geek we each hold in our hearts all know that this would be amazing. We imagine the ultimate endless fairytale adventure, with tearjerker storylines and bonus snotting for sheer nostalgia factor. What with the corporate suits sticking their thumbs in as many rich pies as possible, is a Disney licensed anime so far from the realms of possibility?

Ōkami

This story screams healing anime, with bonus wolf. And we know that anime loves its wolves, from Princess Mononoke to Wolf’s Rain to Wolf Children. Following the original game’s HD re-release, it would be so soothing to go back to journeying with Amaterasu, helping the earth to bloom and saving it from the forces of darkness, petal by petal, leaf by leaf. Actually, it sounds exactly what we need in these trying times.

Nier: Automata

We’re missing a good sci-fi drama in our lives since we finished Star Trek: Discovery, and this would be the perfect solution. Cutting 2B free from the strings of being a player proxy, her character could be given the fleshing out it fully deserves. Besides, there’s something fishy about the distant humans of YoRHa, something that would be satisfying to sleuth out. Also, need more Jackass.

Legend of Zelda

Isn’t it strange that one of the biggest Japanese game franchises has had manga by the volume, but never its own anime? Elves and faeries have a way of translating beautifully to the medium, so we could just imagine a Hakumei and Mikochi introduction unfurling into a slightly more adult Magical Circle Guru Guru. We do know there’s the animated series from the same folks as the Super Mario Bros. cartoon but…no.

Beyond Good and Evil

This tale from French game designer Michel Ancel, also of Rayman fame, is a social justice warrior’s dream come true. As Jade, you play a kick-ass photojournalist fighting for truth over violence and fear-mongering propaganda, the message reverberating beneath a far from average ‘stop the aliens’ storyline. Inspiration from Japanese culture and Buddhist philosophy is built into the game world, so it would be great to see that expounded upon. If we have a top choice from this list, Beyond Good and Evil: The Anime would be it.

Oh no. Now we’ve done it. The more imagining we do, the more we want these series to be reality. You lot probably won’t help, with all the cool suggestions we’ve surely missed. But do log in with your comments anyway, so you can vent your should-be-would-be’s too.

7 Comments on Ready player none: five video games we want to see as anime

Okami!!!! Completely agree with that one! Beyod Good and Evil would also be really cool, although it would feel strange having japanese animation 😛 I love the art style of that game and it would feel a little strange (at least in the beginning).
Nier: Automata, well, unless they did all the previous games people wouldn’t understand a thing! Even I that read the prologue of the game to understand it I am still a bit at loss xD (hope the story starts making more sense in the future since I’m still in the beginning).
Kingdom Hearts, only with English dub 😛 I live for the Donald Duck voice! xD

We love BGAE’s style too, just everything about it. Dominic’s kept his first generation Xbox for well over a decade because of that game, so he can always go back to it. That old thing still works a treat too! I don’t think it would be too much of a jump to anime style though, I can just imagine Pey’j looking like Porco Rosso.

Yeah, that would be the only thing with any Nier anime. We watched a video that went over all the significant events in the franchise pre-Automata, and we were both like…yeah, still none the wiser 😆

Ooooh nice! I don’t have Xbox, but I do still have my Playstation One and Playstation 2 (and I will never sell them or give them away) and you know what? They also work lolol The problem now is that since I have a plasma at home the graphics come all wrong because the tv is too advanced for the systems bah

Ahahah I did the same!!! And to be honest I still don’t get it 100% >.< I'm still in the beginning of the game so I hope that with time I start to understand it a little better ahah

YES YES YEEEES A BIG, TREMENDOUS YES AAH
Especially Kingdom Hearts and Okami, both gorgeous games that would look beautiful animated (if done right). In fact, I think more series should do that. There’s so many good games that would work beautiful animated in a series or movie, it’s a pity they don’t get snatched up 😿

Game adaptations can be very tricky (let’s face it I have yet to see a truly good game adaptation make it to the big screen). But…it would maybe work for anime. Out of all these Kingdom Hearts sounds like the best choice.
Another one I would love to see is Shadow of the Colossus. Such an amazing game that one was 😊😊